“Turn to the river!” Mary Kramer cried,
hoping to bolster our Terre Haute pride.
But before her artsy ideas could prevail,
the Wabash banks became the site for our jail.
Instead of a location for recreation,
it will be a spot for incarceration.
The current county pokey is over-full.
You’re stuck in the slammer unless you have pull.
It takes a chunk of money to post your bail,
so po’ folk law breakers sit on their tail
until they get their promised day in court.
Who knew this kind of legality would thwart
decades of plans to create a Riverscape
that might draw tourists to come and shop and gape.
A windowless building was not the dream
of the Wabash River redevelopment team!
At meetings where ideas of locals were shared,
blue prints for a big new jail weren’t prepared.
Now some citizens feel sad and defeated,
but no doubt the project will be completed.
No matter how loudly they weep and they wail,
they’ll soon get a spanking new riverfront jail.
